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And so it begins…

Yep, so Donald Trump is our new president. This is just something I have to say about it…

I honestly just feel a mixture of sadness, anger, disappointment, and fear right now so I just have to take a deep breath and calm down…but before I start talking, I just have to say that I’m not trying to offend anyone, and if you’re a Trump supporter who feels like you’d be offended and would want to strike back here, it might be better for you to stop reading right now. If you choose to continue, well that’s still your choice, but in the long run I’m trying to minimize the amount of negativity that is already being spread.

Okay, so first of all, we have to remind ourselves that Trump was elected. He was misogynistic, racist, xenophobic, and LGBTQIA+-phobic, but he was still chosen by the people.

And that really just brings me to the fundamental issue in America. The good part of me hopes that the American people voted for him “in spite” of what he said. Not “because” of what he said. But we do know that that’s not true.

In the end, it really did come down to what ideals were most important to people of the United States, and the majority of citizens agreed on one thing: the economy. For the people, Trump, a businessman, seemed like the obvious choice, and with that, they were willing to overlook his demeaning comments and acts towards women, Mexicans, Muslims, and the LGBTQIA+ community, etc. (“How he acts towards women has nothing to do with how he protects America,” someone said.)

For people like me, who place a lot of weight on these social issues, Trump would have never been the answer.

In addition, living in California, which is a solid blue state because it is so full of immigrants, for the past few years I feel like I’ve lived in this safe bubble. I felt like America has truly progressed forwards – electing the first black president, legalizing gay marriage…these were all national acts that gave me hope for humanity.

And yet, the 2016 election was such a rude wake-up call, a reminder that most of America is still so conservative and so willing to blind themselves to the prejudice in the world today. I see this everyday, actually – one of my friends doesn’t believe that gender and racial inequality exist, and this is something that I have debated with her over and over again, but nothing seems to get her to see my point of view.

The fact that the entire government is now republican-run is even more terrifying, and it will shift the political atmosphere of this country back right, and the idea of undoing all the progress we’ve made in the last eight years is very unsettling.

And okay, Clinton’s track record is pretty terrible as well, and I do think that the DNC brought this on themselves by choosing Clinton over Bernie, who would have united Democrats and won the general election by a landslide. And still, no matter what, this country is going to be divided, but it’s important to continuously remind ourselves that while Trump manifested the negative beliefs, it was what many Americans wanted. He had the support of half of the nation. It wasn’t just him.

After all, it’s never just one person. It’s always a group of people who believe in an idea, versus a group of people who believe in the other.

For people who believe in Trump’s slogan, “Make America Great Again”, I have to ask, when was America every great? To me, being great means being accepting of all people. From the moment Europeans set foot on this land and forced Native Americans out of their homeland, people in this country have been filled with hate against people who were different and people who were brave enough to go against the status quo. And until all this prejudice is over, America will never be “great”.

At this point, I’m honestly terrified for the POC, immigrants, women, LGBTQIA+ etc. who will definitely feel the impact of such a conservative setback, but I will say that many Americans are still ready to fight, still looking to a better future. I live in such a compassionate community, and it is my hope that one day the entire country will be this accepting. With that said, please never give up and keep fighting for what you believe in. This isn’t over. And it will never be over. This country and everyone in this country is worth it, and I just want everybody who’s feeling afraid right now to know that we are still standing behind you.

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4 comments

I’m not American, but I strongly agree with everything that you’ve said, and I too hope that one day immigrants, women, and LGBTQIA+ can all go anywhere they wish without being judged for who they are. ❤ We can only hope that one day the world will see the right way of how things ought to be.